2012: Houston's warmest year on record

Even after the brutal drought and heat of 2011, 2012 will go down as Houston's warmest year on record.

According to the National Weather Service, December 2012 was very warm, averaging 3 to 5 degrees warmer than the 30-year normals.

The unofficial 2012 average temperature for the city of Houston was 72.1 degrees, which is the warmest year on record. The previous warmest year on record was 71.9 degrees in 1962. The average temperature in 2011 was 71.8 degrees, which was the third warmest year on record.

College Station tied its warmest year on record. It had an average temperature of 71.6 degrees in 2012 and 2011.

The city of Galveston also recorded its warmest year on record with an average temperature of 73.9 degrees. The previous warmest year was 72.6 degrees back in 2006. The six warmest years on record for Galveston have occurred since 1994.

Hobby Airport also recorded it`s warmest year on record. The average annual temperature was 72.6 degrees, besting last year's record of 72.4 degrees. The eight warmest years on record have occurred since 1998.